KoboriGrillsCSR

Michael Kobori has led sustainability at Levi Strauss & Co. since 2001. In this role, he is responsible for the company’s sustainability vision and strategy across all business functions. Under Kobori’s tenure, Levi Strauss & Co. has been an industry leader in sustainability, pioneering initiatives such as the rollout of Water Less production techniques, reducing water use by more than 2 billion liters to date; growth of Better Cotton to 21 percent of all the company’s cotton usage; development of a hazard-based Screened Chemistry Framework; expansion of Worker Well-Being programs to more than 100,000 workers; and inclusion of Care for the Planet™ labels on all products. Previously, Kobori was a vice president at BSR and spent nearly 10 years at The Asia Foundation.

Wei Dong Zhou is responsible for setting the strategic direction of all of The Sustainability Consortium’s projects in China as chief representative. He has also been newly selected as executive secretary-general of the Alliance of Green Consumption and Green Supply Chain in China. Zhou has more than 20 years of experience in Chinese government, nonprofit organization management, CSR and sustainability strategy, philanthropy, the state owner sector, and multinational companies. Prior to joining The Sustainability Consortium, Zhou worked for a private foundation in China as general manager for one year, and for seven years prior to that, worked as BSR’s China Country Director. At BSR, he founded offices in Beijing and Guangzhou and provided advice and counsel to BSR’s member companies and their sustainable supply chain partners.

KaraHurst

Kara Hurst leads Worldwide Sustainability at Amazon. Utilizing Amazon’s scale, speed, and innovation, Sustainability at Amazon includes core teams focused on packaging innovation, renewable energy, energy efficiency, circular economy, social responsibility and human rights, sustainability science and innovation, sustainability technology, partnerships and external engagement, and sustainable transportation. Prior to Amazon, Hurst served as CEO of The Sustainability Consortium and as a Vice President of BSR for 11 years, where she built global industry practices in technology, pharmaceuticals, hospitality, and entertainment. Prior to BSR, Hurst worked in Silicon Valley as executive director of the public-private venture OpenVoice, in corporate affairs for the Children’s Health Council, as a research lead at the Urban Institute, and as a policy staffer for both Mayor Willie Brown of San Francisco and the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan of New York.

kaufer

Steve Kaufer cofounded TripAdvisor in 2000 with the mission to help travelers around the world plan and book the perfect trip. Under his leadership, TripAdvisor has grown into the largest travel site in the world. As CEO, Kaufer has led the growth of TripAdvisor, Inc., which includes 24 other travel media brands that operate in 48 markets worldwide. Prior to cofounding TripAdvisor, he was president of CDS, Inc., an independent software vendor, and prior to that, was cofounder and vice president of engineering of CenterLine Software. Kaufer holds several software patents and has won a number of awards for his entrepreneurship and leadership in the travel industry, including being inducted into the 2015 British Travel and Hospitality Hall of Fame and receiving the 2015 Pioneer Award by the International Society of Hospitality Consultants and 2005 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.